Love Island for grown ups? Bring it on…maybe at long last I’ll find The One, says Gail Porter
TONIGHT sees this year’s series of Love Island end, with one lucky couple winning the £50,000 prize.
But ITV bosses are already busy planning a new version of the show, which would see singletons over 40 enter the villa for the first time.
TV host Gail Porter, 51, admits she is unlucky in love and would love to find The One by appearing on the new show, tentatively titled Your Mum, My Dad.
The former model, who is mum to Honey, 19, dated late Prodigy frontman Keith Flint in the Nineties before tying the knot with Toploader guitarist Dan Hipgrave in 2001.
But her marriage ended just three years later and she has been single ever since.
Today she explains why she would be ideal for the new show.
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"When I heard Love Island is to pilot a new show featuring men and women over 40, I couldn’t have been more excited.
I’m 51 and one thing’s for sure — the older generation could teach those youngsters a thing or two about dating.
ITV2 bosses said they wanted to stage a more mature edition of the reality favourite after fans criticised the current crop of body-perfect contestants as “too young”, with little of any interest to say.
And I have to agree.
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People in their forties and fifties have been there and done that and can approach finding love with a little more wisdom than we’ve seen in this past series.
And wouldn’t it be refreshing — and relatable — to see a few beer bellies and saggy bottoms rather than picture-perfect bodies on TV? I think so.
Filming for the show, Your Mum, My Dad, will start this year, for screening in 2023.
And if they asked me to be in it, I’d jump at the chance. Hopefully it would help me find lasting love.
I’ve been pretty unlucky in that regard.
My marriage broke down because we grew apart when my daughter Honey, now 19, was just four years old and in 2006 I was divorced.
And since then I haven’t really dated. You could even say I have had a bit of a disastrous love life.
People think that once you’re over 40, you don’t want to date or have a sex life.
But that’s not the case. I would love to be going out on dates and meeting new men, but nobody ever asks me out.
In fact I can’t remember the last time a man tried to chat me up.
I even had a meeting with casting producers for a charity version of Celebrity First Dates.
But they decided not to pick me in the end and I thought: “God, I can’t even get a date for charity!”
I’m 51 and one thing’s for sure — the older generation could teach those youngsters a thing or two about dating.
I think I might be undateable.
I don’t know what it is — maybe I talk too much, and I’m also very conscious about my hair, which I lost to the condition alopecia totalis in 2005.
UNLUCKY IN LOVE
There’s no doubt the dating game has changed since I was younger. I remember at school, someone would pass you a note in class.
It was all very exciting, then you’d meet at the school gate.
Then it would be like: “I’ll meet you at House Of Fraser at 7pm” — that was a dating meeting point in Edinburgh back in the day
But now it’s all swiping right or left on apps and online dating, and I’m terrified of it.
I don’t know how people do it, though I do have friends who have met partners online, and they have great relationships.
I just think if I meet a bloke online, it will all go terribly wrong because I’m very unlucky.
I was unlucky when it came to my marriage and I’ve been unlucky with my hair.
I just want to meet someone outside House of Fraser and go for a walk.
But the dating scene has moved on, and so must I.
So I would throw myself into Love Island, just as I did on Celebrity Big Brother.
I’m always up for a challenge, but I’d prefer if there were no kissing challenges, if I’m honest.
I just think if I meet a bloke online, it will all go terribly wrong because I’m very unlucky.
And I certainly wouldn’t be bed- hopping. I’d rather sleep on the floor.
Being homeless in the past taught me how to toughen up, take everything with a pinch of salt and be the strongest human I can be.
So sleeping on the floor wouldn’t be too difficult.
ODD HABITS
I’m a bit of a prude when it comes to stuff like that.
If there was kissing going on, I’d make sure everyone was using plenty of Listerine.
All jokes aside, it would be great for a group of people my age to say: “You know what? We’ve still got it.”
We might have aged a bit and have a few more wrinkles but we’re still in the game. It’s time to show off the oldies.
And wouldn’t it be interesting to see women on screen who are going through the menopause?
We menopausal women don’t even know what day it is.
When my hormones kick in, I don’t know why I’m crying.
That’s why I’ve largely given up wearing make-up.
And perhaps younger viewers could learn something.
When you get to my age, you don’t worry about the little things in life.
Most people over 40 have developed a few odd habits because we’ve lived so long.
We might have aged a bit and have a few more wrinkles but we’re still in the game. It’s time to show off the oldies.
I tend to wake up at 3am every day, so I’d have to get up and start cleaning.
Usually at home I would watch a true crime series, but I wouldn’t be able to do that in the villa.
So I reckon the place would just be spotless.
If I went in the villa, I’d be seeking a man who is kind, funny, makes me laugh and is a good cuddler.
I love a dad bod too, when they have just a bit of a belly. I love someone that I can cuddle, and a dad bod is just right.
And they’d have to make me laugh endlessly and at least go to the cinema once a week. Do I want too much?
I’d be all about dating one person at a time, and I think that’s what makes things work when it comes to relationships.
And if someone cheated on me in Casa Amore, I wouldn’t be afraid to confront them about it — don’t be turning your head for a bombshell.
That would not be OK.
And if another woman coupled up with my man, I’d say: “I’m Scottish.
"Have him, he was probably terrible anyway.”
I’d have a stiff upper lip, no fighting, but I wouldn’t forget to say I’m a karate black belt.
I rarely put on make-up and obviously I don’t have to do my hair, so being on the show would be an easy ride for me.
I’d avoid bikinis, but I’d wear a swimsuit that sucks you in, plus a nice shawl.
My aim wouldn’t be marriage — that’s too expensive now.
It would be to find someone who has their own flat so we can live apart but meet for date nights and cuddles.
Young people seem to want to be together all the time, but I know myself well enough to know I need my space.
If there were arguments in the villa and it was kicking off, I would just dive into the pool or go and sit under a tree.
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I’d try to bring humour, and keep others calm while also bringing a lot of cleanliness to the table.
Plus my villa-mates could rub my head for luck. I’m not one to put all my eggs in one basket, but for this show I would."
